1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to photo albums and more particularly to an improved combination photo/video cassette album.
2. Description of Related Art
With the advent of readily useable and relatively inexpensive camcorders to make videos of special occasions, and video recording devices to play these and other video recordings in the privacy of one's home, there exists the need for a single album or storage means for holding both still photographs and related video cassettes that a person wishes to retain and store together, for easy access and to prevent their loss and/or separation.
While books and other means for holding cassettes or films are known, they take the form of specifically designed storage containers having bound or insertable pages, as well as a recess formed in or insertable within the storage container for holding audio cassettes, books, or magnetic disks for specific purposes. However, after many attempts to solve the problems of storing still photographs and video cassettes of related events, in a cheap, easy to use and convenient manner, there still exists the need for a single storage means for photos and related video cassettes that meets all of the above criteria.
One such prior art storage means is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,866,751 which shows a book having a pair of covers with pages bound therein and an opening along one edge or the front cover of the book, into which an audio cassette may be inserted for storage or withdrawn for use. This patent, however fails to show the combination of a loose leaf photo album and video cassette holder of the type disclosed herein.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 2,341,600, 3,583,729, 4,002,355, 4,049,119, 4,588,321, 4,765,466 and 4,828,105 all show various other storage containers for holding a roll of film, an audio tape, a magnetic disk, or similar articles, together with bound or unbound pages, for specific purposes, as recited in each of these patents. None of these patents, whether taken alone or in combination, show the specific combination of a loose leaf photo album and video cassette holder of the type disclosed in the present specification.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,829,132 and 4,290,524 show still further storage containers for holding video cassettes with specific cover means to hold a cassette and a book or pages therein, or for shipment and storage of a video cassette having a series of indexable video programs and a related magazine or program which includes program guides corresponding to each program in the series of indexable video programs on the video cassette. Again, these patents, whether taken alone or in combination, fail to show the specific combination of a loose leaf photo album and video cassette holder of the type disclosed in the present specification.